Harvey Elliott said he will take whatever decision is best for his future in the summer as the youngster admitted he has found his lack of game time this season difficult to deal with.
Elliott was developing into a key player for Liverpool under former manager Jurgen Klopp but has seen his minutes reduced under new head coach Arne Slot, making just his second start of the Premier League campaign against Brighton on Monday.
The 22-year-old had to wait until May 3 for his first league start, in the away game against Chelsea by which point the league title had been wrapped up.
His lack of game time has seen Elliott linked with a move away from Liverpool in the coming months, and he addressed his individual struggles after the game against Brighton.
“It’s been hard with how much I’ve played,” Elliott told Sky Sports after scoring on the South Coast. “I’ve tried as hard as I could and whatever happens, happens.
“It’s about what’s best for my career. It’s about reflecting and seeing what I can do. I’m here at the moment and I’m focusing on the final game.”
Addressing the disappointing nature of Liverpool’s loss to Brighton, after the Reds let a 2-1 lead slip to lose 3-2, Elliott added: “You try not to get too carried away with the celebrations, we’ve worked really hard though the season.
“Some lads like myself haven’t played as much through the season and it’s about going out and enjoying it. We want to win and enjoy it. We need to take the positives and take it into the final game next week.”
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Slot addressed Elliott’s struggles earlier this month, explaining his thought process behind why Elliott wasn’t getting many minutes.
The start of the midfielder’s season was interrupted by a foot fracture, and after he returned he failed to break back into the team.
Slot said: “I have mainly chosen other players, also in part because he was injured for a long time and, I have been honest with him, the first part after he came back from his injury he wasn’t the same before his injury.
“But the last few months he is back to his old level again.
“There is no need for me to start with different players but I think if you look at the amount of minutes he has had in the last two months, and the months before, you can see it goes up already.
“That tells you that I like him more when he came back from his injury in the first months.”
